Putting rug including removable sections to form simulated cups



June 6, 1967 E. F. RINER 3,323,802

PUTTING RUG INCLUDING REMOVABLE SECTIONS TO FORM SIMULATED CUPS Filed April 2, 1965 n. h mu m llalllzaplrlgqaiipj i United States Patent 3,323,802 PUTTING RUG INCLUDING REMOVABLE SEC- TIONS TO FORM SIMULATED CUPS Eunice F. Riner, Longmeadow, Mass, assignor to Eigelow-Sanford, Inc., New York, N.Y., a corporation of Delaware Filed Apr. 2, 1965, Ser. No. 445,064 6 Claims. (Cl. 273-476) The present invention relates to a putting rug and it relates, more particularly, to a putting rug having surfaces which simulate a putting green and the sourrounding fringe.

Generally speaking, a putting rug in accordance with the present invention is formed by combining fabrics such as pile carpet having pile of differing heights in adjoining areas which may be designated as a border area and a putting area. The surface of the fabric forming the putting area simulates the surface of a putting green and contains circular sections which are spaced relative to each other and are removable as to form spaced holes or cups in the putting area. The border area surrounds the putting area and has pile extending above the surface of the putting area which simulates the area surrounding a putting green.

An object of the invention is to provide a putting rug which will enable a golfer to practice putting indoors under conditions simulating those on a putting green. Another object of the invention is to provide a putting rug which provides amusement as a competitive game.

A further object of the invention is to provide a putting rug which is constructed in such a manner that it will withstand wear and will be usable over a long period of time.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent and will be better understood from the following description and the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a putting rug embodying the invention;

FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic view in vertical section taken along line III-I of FIG. 1 with a circular cup-defining section thereof being shown in raised position and being drawn on an enlarged scale;

FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic view in vertical section taken along line IIIIII of FIG. 1 and is drawn to a larger scale than FIG. 2; and

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view illustrating portions of the component elements forming the putting rug shown in FIG. 1.

It will be understood that the drawing is of a diagrammatic nature for the purpose of illustrating the invention. No attempt has been made to illustrate the details of the fabrics employed as they are of -a conventional nature and will be well understood.

Referring now to the drawing in detail and, in particular, to FIG. 1, there is a putting rug which may be rectangular or of other desired shape.

The putting rug 10 comprises a border 11 which surrounds a central putting area 12. The central putting area contains a series of circular sections 13 which are spaced relative to each other and which may be removed, as shown in FIG. 2, to provide the cups or holes.

When the putting area is not in use, the circular sections may remain in place so as to protect the edges of the holes or cups from possible damage and to .provide a smooth surface which may be walked upon.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the border of the putting rug is a pile fabric, such as carpet, having upstanding pile elements 14 which extend above the surface of the adjoining putting area. The pile elements may be in the 3,323,802 Patented June 6, 1967 form of loops, such as may be formed in the tufting operation on a burlap backing 15 and which are anchored thereto.

The central or putting area of the rug may be formed from a fabric such as woven carpet having upstanding pile elements 16 which are shorter than the pile elements of the border. These pile elements may be in the form of cut pile and are preferably formed from yarns having a high twist which imparts kinks to the pile elements. A pile structure formed of normally twisted yarns tends to lay in a uniform direction, whereas the kinks obtained with highly twisted yarns imparts a random lay to the pile surface and a golf ball follows a straighter path when rolling on such a surface than it does on a pile surface having a lay in one direction.

However, the piled elements forming the surface of the putting area may be in the form of loops and if desired, a heavy felted fabric having a relatively smooth surface may be employed for the putting area.

As mentioned above, the pile elements of the border are longer than the pile elements of the adjoining putting area and should extend above the surface of the putting area for a distance sufficient to stop a golf ball from rolling beyond the outer edges of the putting rug under normal conditions. A difference of approximately one-half inch in the height of the pile elements of the border and the surface of the putting area is usually suflicient to accomplish this.

In constructing the .putting mg, a layer of cushioning material 17, such as sponge rubber, is attached to the back of the carpet or fabric forming the putting area. The thickness of the layer of cushioning material should be sufficient to provide a cup or hole of depth into which a golf ball will drop. After attachment of the cushioning layer to the fabric, the circular sections of the combined fabric and cushioning layer are then cut out at the desired locations, as indicated in FIG. 1, so that these sections can be removed to provide the holes or cups.

In order to secure the border to the putting area, the burlap backing of the fabric forming the border is provided with extensions 15a which extend inwardly beneath the cushioning layer of the adjoining putting area and are secured thereto. In addition, a sheet 18 of woven material, such as scrim, is then placed over the. entire back of the putting rug and is attached thereto by means of a suitable adhesive.

It will be noted that the sheet of scrim forms the bottoms of the holes or cups and numbers designating the various holes may be printed on the upwardly facing surface of the sheet at the bottom of each hole.

It will be understood that various modifications and changes may be made in the embodiment of the invention described and illustrated herein without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as defined by the following claims.

I claim:

1. A putting rug which comprises a central putting area, said putting area being formed of a layer of textile material having a relatively smooth surface and containing a series of circularly shaped severed sections of said textile material which are spaced relative to each other, a border surrounding said central putting area, pile elements carried by said border and extending upwardly therefrom to define a surface above the surface of the putting area, means uniting adjoining edges of the border and the central putting area and a sheet of flexible material extending over the back of the border and the putting area and being attached thereto, said sheet extending over and forming closed bottoms beneath said removable circular sections in said central putting area.

2. A putting rug as defined in claim 1 wherein said layer of textile material forming said central putting area is a piece of pile carpet having upstanding pile elements. 4. A putting rug as defined in claim 2 wherein said layerof textile material forming said central putting area is a piece of pile carpet having upstanding pile elements in the form of. cut pile, said last named pile elements being formed of yarns having a high degree of twist where- 'by kinks are imparted thereto.

5. A putting rug comprising a border comprising upstanding pile elements supported on a backing, a putting area attached to and enclosed within said border, said putting area comprising a pile fabric and a layer of cushioning material supporting said pile fabric, a series of circularly shaped severed sections of said pile fabric and the attached layer of cushioning material, being located at spaced points in the putting area and being removable therefrom, said pile fabric of the putting area having pile elements of shorter height than the pile elements of the border whereby the surface of the putting area is at a lesser height than the surface of the border, and a sheet of fabric extending over and being'attached to the back of the border and the putting area, said sheet extending over and forming closed bottoms beneath the removable circular sections in the putting area.

6. A putting rug as defined in claim 5 wherein the pile elements of the border are in the form of loops and the pile elements of the fabric of the putting area are in the form of cut pile with the pile yarns being kinked.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,679,374 8/1928 Reirden 273-178 7/ 1926 Meyer 273176 

5. A PUTTING RUG COMPRISING A BORDER COMPRISING UPSTANDING PILE ELEMENTS SUPPORTED ON A BACKING, A PUTTING AREA ATTACHED TO AND ENCLOSED WITHIN SAID BORDER, SAID PUTTING AREA COMPRISING A PILE FABRIC AND A LAYER OF CUSHIONING MATERIAL SUPPORTING SAID PILE FABRIC, A SERIES OF CIRCULARLY SHAPED SEVERED SECTIONS OF SAID PILE FABRIC AND THE ATTACHED LAYER OF CUSHIONING MATERIAL, BEING LOCATED AT SPACED POINTS IN THE PUTTING AREA AND BEING REMOVABLE THEREFROM, SAID PILE FABRIC OF THE PUTTING AREA HAVING PILE ELEMENTS OF SHORTER HEIGHT THAN THE PILE ELEMENTS OF THE BORDER WHEREBY THE SURFACE OF THE PUTTING 